The Eastern Conference lost a few of its top stars this summer as part of the great arms race in the West, as teams try to combat the Warriors. Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, and Jimmy Butler all migrated to the Western Conference, leaving a bit of a vacuum of star power in the East.
In response to the star balance becoming even more dramatic, the NBA changed up the All-Star Game format to eliminate the East vs. West and instead go with captains drafting teams from the full pool of All-Stars from both conferences. That figures to help avoid any disastrous mismatches in the All-Star Game, but for fans in the East hoping to see the best in the world come through their hometown arena this season, the visits will be far more limited as West teams only visit each East team once a year.
Beyond LeBron James, there’s now a general absence of an established superstar in the East, but that’s not to say there aren’t some budding stars capable of filling that void. John Wall has begun his statement season in Washington as he looks to stake his claim to a spot in the argument of the league’s elite point guards, while Kyrie Irving is now “the man” in Boston with a chance to prove himself as well. However, the heir apparent to James in the East whenever the King decides to either take his talents West or simply retire in the future is Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks’ forward emerged as an All-Star last year and was a trendy MVP pick this offseason. In the opener, Antetokounmpo showed why he was getting MVP buzz by dropping 37 points and 13 points on the Celtics in a Bucks win. On Friday night, the past, present, and future of Eastern Conference megastars will meet in Milwaukee as the Cavs take on the Bucks, and LeBron James has certainly taken notice of his new star competition in the division and conference.
"(Giannis) has put in the work, as you can tell."@KingJames discusses the growth he's seen of the Bucks star.
🎥 → https://t.co/GnrA2nE6BW https://t.co/FRHXaHZO9k— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) October 20, 2017
“He’s just gotten better,” James said. “He’s gotten better and he’s taken the opportunity of actually playing the game and learning the game and he’s gotten better every single season. I think J-Kidd has done a great job of putting him in position to be successful, but you can tell he’s put in the work as well.”
James is still the King and after his opening night performance in which he put up 29 points, 16 rebounds, and nine assists in a game in which he claimed to be “out of shape” I wouldn’t bet on anyone passing James in the immediate future. However, it’s hard not to look at a LeBron-Giannis matchup with some excitement as to what it shows as the past, present, and future of the East and, really, the NBA as a whole.
Antetokounmpo’s freakish abilities on both ends of the floor have catapulted him into the league’s 10 best player on most anyone’s list and he could knock on the door for the MVP this season, especially if the Bucks are near the top of the East. The scariest part of Giannis’ game is that it isn’t hard to see where he can improve to get even better. His shooting from the perimeter remains an issue and it’s the one thing that gives defenses a chance against him, as they can sag off of him, making his long strides slightly less effective.
If he ever becomes even a solid three-point shooter and teams have to respect that, he might become unstoppable. If that sounds like a familiar refrain, remember that was the one knock on James’ offensive reportoire early in his career too, before he became a reliable three-point threat, thus unlocking his full potential. Antetokounmpo’s commitment to working on his game has shined through in his consistent development as James noted prior to Friday night’s game, and if that jump shot comes around along with his continued development, he might become the best player in the NBA (or even ever, as Kevin Durant says is his ultimate potential).
